Inventor's firm says creator of the wind-up radio has died
LONDON (AP) — Trevor Baylis, creator of the clockwork or wind-up radio, has died at 80.
David Bunting, CEO of Trevor Baylis Brands, says Baylis died Monday after a lengthy illness.
Baylis developed his best-known invention after seeing a television program on AIDS in Africa and learning that people weren't getting lifesaving information because they didn't have electricity and couldn't afford batteries to power radios.
Inspired by old-fashioned gramophones, Baylis designed a wind-up radio. The invention won him international acclaim and an audience with South African icon Nelson Mandela, but didn't pay huge dividends. He later formed a company to help inventors protect and market products, but wasn't motivated by wealth.